Many teens in New York City and elsewhere survive with help from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – or food stamps – to pay for the food on the table. But two teens in New York, Leo and Benno Batali, are living on food stamps by choice this week, as their family takes on the Food Stamp Challenge. Their dad, celebrity chef Mario Batali, is a member of the board of the Food Bank for New York City, and he’s talking with his family and with viewers on TV show The Chew about just how challenging it can be to eat for $1.48 per person per meal, which is the federal allotment for families in need.

Mario Batali, speaking at the 2012 New York City Food Bank's Can-Do awards, has taken up the Food Stamp Challenge. (Photo by ANDREW H. WALKER, Getty Images)